A Lark Ascending

Saw him playing in one of those Evan Parker evenings where the musicians mixed and matched. Very impressive.

I always wear a dinner jacket and have the score in front of me. I have a dedicated set of pince-nez to scowl over when I disapprove of the recording (which I try to do most of the time). I often flounce out of the living room if the recording is not up to my exacting standards.

It was the early 70s! I remember this - 1973, 1974? - wasn't Brian Eno involved (before he became Brian)? To answer my own question: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portsmouth_Sinfonia They seem to have had follow ups to their 'hit'.

Such touch! Such tone!

I think I can remember seeing that photo, but can't for the life of me recall where or when (except it was a long time ago). What is it? Who is it? MG Fairport Convention - 'Unhalfbricking' from 1969. The band are behind the fence. Sandy Denny's parents, I think, in the foreground. You probably sold some copies in your record shop days.

Real doors here. Well, I think there's a door in the first one.

Do gates count as doors?

"I might be conducting a significant regional UK orchestra but what I really want to be is Julie Andrews."

I think it was 'The Devils' that I tried around 1978 and gave up on. Never bothered with Dostoevsky after that. As with music, there is so much out there that you are going to like that I've never had much time for pursuing things someone else says you ought to be absorbing if you are getting nothing from it. I did read "Anna Karenina" in mid-1976 (I had time to kill as I was finding it tough finding my first job) and loved it. Didn't find it difficult or long-winded. Followed it up with "War and Peace" (I had 6 months between finish training and getting a job!!!) which I also loved until the last 100 or more pages where Tolstoy flips into a long philosophical ramble. Gave up there. Always regret having got 19/20ths through but never finishing that. Enjoyed Turgenev in those Russian months too.

Love Strauss - lots of entertaining pieces but it's Der Rosenkavalier that I like best.

Thanks sidewinder, Perfect timing for Snoives.

Episode 1 from this BBC4 series from some time back on The Impressionists (had it stored on my recorder). Some of the visual jokes are a bit daft but this is nicely unstuffy. Must watch more of these programmes on painting - TV is a good way of getting a sense of a period or genre.

Like all the others - personally, I'm quite content with that. Three superb musicians bringing out different shapes from much loved tunes. If you require recordings to trace a line of development or 'get better' then you might be disappointed. If you take it on its own terms, a very pleasurable hour. I especially like the two Bernstein tunes.

Renegades from the Salvation Army. I'll stick to senna pods.

I always found Debussy more akin to Odilon Redon MG I suspect you are more accurate there. Seem to recall either Debussy being unhappy with the Impressionist label or some commentators. Wasn't he associated with Symbolism?

I love the Debussy Ravel quartets. If you don't know it, seek out a version of Ravel's 'Introduction and Allegro for Harp, Flute, Clarinet and String Quartet' - desert island music. Well, actually, lush European countryside music. This is another brilliant record: The music sounds like the cover. I think you'll find the Faure piano quintets at Hyperion along with the piano quartets: http://www.hyperion-records.co.uk/dc.asp?dc=D_CDA66766&vw=dc http://www.hyperion-records.co.uk/al.asp?al=CDA66166 The site is accent sensitive - only a selection of Faure recordings appear without. But there is a link under 'People' that gets you the full list.

Spring was very late this year (sounds like a theme for a song) but my goodness are we getting the pay off now: The laburnum tree is the best I remember it: And who says the bees are all gone? Built a cheap B+Q greenhouse last September and am starting to enjoy what you can do in it: Novice stuff I know, but I can't believe how much pleasure I'm getting from my chaotic patch. Now if only I could remember what seeds I planted!

I can vouch for the quality of their downloads. I've purchased a lot that way in recent years. Notice they have their standard label and then 'Helios' where they reissue music - normally around £5.99. Same standard of packaging though. For what its worth I think some of their Faure chamber music records won various awards (music I've yet to connect to).

You might take a nose round Timpani Records. A French label that specialises in French music of the 19th/20thC. You won't get approved recordings but there's lots of out of the way music - I've grown fond of Jean Cras for example: http://www.timpani-records.com/compositeurs.php Hyperion - which tends to specialise in smaller scale performance - has a lot of French music, especially song. http://www.hyperion-records.co.uk/al.asp?al=CDA67255/6 I don't know the Poulenc discs I've linked to but can highly recommend the music itself. Chuck in some names into the search engine and see what you get.

I read a marvellous book by Dobbs on the Cuban Missile Crisis during the winter. Couldn't resist this one as I'm starting to teach the beginning of a Cold War course again in a couple of weeks. Just got the big three returning from Yalta - nothing particularly new but you get a real insight into the human drama (and the lack of bathrooms!), the very different personalities and the growing frustration of Churchill as he sees Britain falling rapidly into a very poor third place. Amazing the number of diplomats there who were carrying terminal illnesses yet still kept going.

No. Grew up in an a home where smoking was not tolerated. At school smoking always seemed too desperate a ploy to be included with the cool kids. I'm always saddened by how, despite all the evidence, its pull on the young remains so strong. All the education in the world cannot counteract the cultural cache it still commands amongst many kids. I understand the appeal of doing what is forbidden, but....

Strange coincidence. Last Sunday I went for a longish walk along the Thames near Abingdon - two hills were forever coming into view and I eventually climbed them. Called Whittenham Clumps. Great views of the Dorchester-on-Thames area below: I've been watching a TV programme on British painting and today stumbled on the fact that these were the focus of a number of Paul Nash's paintings (better known for his war paintings): More here At one point I spent ages waiting for clouds to pass to get a sun-filled shot of this hill beyond: Turns out it's a Bronze Age barrow that also intrigued Nash: Small world.

The Alwyn is on the Chandos box of the symphonies - it's a haunting piece. There's a contact address here for Em Marshall-Luck who seems to drive everything: http://www.englishmusicfestival.org.uk/contact.html

Did they mention Frank Auerbach? Not someone I've heard of but looking him up he seems to have been born in 1931. The two episodes I've seen only get to WWII. Maybe in episode 3.

'British Masters' A programme about 20thC British painting. My knowledge of painting doesn't extend much beyond classical CD and book covers so I've found this series fascinating. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b012lk7m